5 games from the PS3 era that deserve a remake (and 5 best left untouched)
The PS3 came out in 2007 to a mixed reception. It was priced considerably high, and the PS2 had left large boots for it to fill. It was competing against the Xbox 360 and had its work cut out.
Gamers warmed up to the PS3 as time passed by as its strong hardware capabilities shone with time. It was a future-ready console, and games available when released hardly even utilized its capabilities.
Towards the end of its lifetime, though, newer games with outstanding gameplay and graphics unleashed the potential of the PS3 and helped Sony retain its strong position in the market.
This article looks at some of the titles from that time that are worth remaking for the newer generation of gamers to enjoy and some timeless ones that are better off enjoyed as is.
Games from the PS3 era that deserve a remake
5) RDR
Based in the American Wild West period, this amazing open-world game by Rockstar was one of the earliest games that capitalized on every gamer’s love for a good western. Released in 2010, the game is set at the turn of the 20th century when the days of brigands and outlaws were slowly drawing to a close as the influence of the government expanded.
Though Arthur Morgan and RDR2 are more famous, the story of John Marston came first and set the stage for the success of the sequel. Rockstar did an outstanding job with the story. It took on sensitive topics such as racism, immigration and personal rights vis a vis government control while exposing that these problems have been around for a long time.
4) Deus Ex: Human Revolution
The third installment of a troubled franchise, Deus Ex Revolution, had very low expectations but surpassed every prediction and delivered a solid gaming experience. Set in the future, the game is like a fusion of Robo-Cop and Blade Runner set in a cyberpunk world where scientific breakthroughs expand the divide between the have and the have nots.
Gamers step into the shoes of Adam Jensen, who is turned into a cyborg and must unravel the conspiracy behind it. With a lot of room to play it stealthily or go in guns blazing, Edios Montreal made this game something for everyone to enjoy.
3) Portal 2
The original Portal was released in 2007 and was named ‘Game of the Year by multiple publications. Released for the PS3 in 2011, Portal 2 was built on lean mind-bending puzzle elements, which worked so well and improved on its scale successfully. The gameplay revolves mainly around using your portal gun to solve challenges and requires considerable thought and quick reflexes.
Valve does an excellent job of presenting you with the clues required instead of just making the way forward plainly obvious and many levels are quite complicated and would leave gamers stumped.
Portal 2 has all the ingredients for a successful remake with a well-fleshed story, expansive lore, genuinely funny characters, and a perfectly tweaked two-player co-op.
2) Bioshock
Considered by many as one of the most defining AAA games of the previous generation, Bioshock was released in 2008 and was different from anything before it. It set the industry standards for narration, world depth, and gameplay variety that many others struggle to achieve.
Set in the undersea city of Rapture, you play as an outsider who discovers that all social order has broken down and the streets are littered with corpses. This compulsive, ever-escalating RPG shooter immerses players into a well-made, cohesive world where your choices and relationship with NPCs impact your gameplay.
It had the best available graphics at the time of release and a soul-stirring background score, which set the tone for the exhilarating yet thoughtful action that the game focused on. A remake of this PS3-era classic would be a sure-shot success.
1) The Last Of Us
Often considered the PS3’s best game, The Last of Us was released towards the end of its time in 2013.
Based in a post-apocalyptic world where society has rapidly decayed, the game focuses not on what brought it about but on the characters' story at hand. With a lot of despair and hopelessness surrounding your actions and choices, the game does a fantastic job of painting the predicaments you find yourself in.
The game instills a sense of struggle to survive encounters with the basic necessary tools instead of making you empowered enough to fight back. With an emotionally hard-hitting, mature style of storytelling and an industry-defining gameplay-driven narrative, the game drops players into a beautifully nuanced, extremely believable nightmare world.
A remake of such a masterpiece would need to be extremely careful not to mess up the perfect formula.
Games from the PS3 era that are best left untouched
1) Dark Souls
The game is synonymous with a punishing difficulty level, released for the PS3 in 2011. It wasn’t that the game was impossible to beat. It was that it spoon-fed you nothing and punished you heavily for your mistakes. It forced gamers to be careful about their actions and decision, and inconsistent play was rewarded with a swift and bloody death.
No matter how impossible the odds might seem, the ingenious level design and deceptively simple combat mechanics guaranteed that there was always a way to win. One just had to play by the arduous rules. The game wants you to win and provides you with the tools to do so, but figuring out how to use them is left up to the player.
Though the franchise took off and is the inspiration behind prominent games today, Dark Souls shouldn’t be remade. It was an original masterpiece and was the proving ground for a generation of gamers and gaming devs. A remaster to update clunky menus serves well enough.
2) Batman Arkham City
Sequel to the hugely successful Batman Arkham Asylum from 2009, Arkham City sets you free in the crime-infested streets of North Gotham. Escaped Arkham convicts have taken over the entire neighborhood and been cordoned off.
Rocksteady's quarantined piece of Gotham is one of the most striking, affecting, and entirely purposeful environments to grace the entire generation of open-world games because it prioritizes fidelity, personality, and meaningful design over sheer scale.
The game doesn't mess with the tried and tested formula of intelligently designed stealthy thinning of the herd before an intense and explosive finale. The game’s storyline is quite dramatic and easily one of the darkest tales of the franchise, making for a satisfying adventure for any Batman fan.
3) Xcom Enemy Unknown
Xcom: Enemy Unknown was released in 2012 and the turn-based-strategy genre has never been the same since. Aliens have attacked Earth, and gamers get to fill the commander's shoes in charge of the resistance.
Such an important role with large implications is generally portrayed as going from strength to strength in other games but not so here. The harsh realities of scarce resources and limited choices define every decision. Chance mishaps on the field could set you back considerably in terms of manpower. The grim aspect of dealing with the death of comrades while continuing your resistance touches upon emotions akin to real-world situations.
The game’s basics are easy to understand and can be picked up by a total strategy noob too. Decision-making is what requires a couple of runs to get the hang of. Xcom2 took the tried and tested formula to greater heights and set the genre's industry standards we enjoy today.
4) Wolfenstein New Order
The franchise has never been about subtlety and stealth. The New Oder is no different. The game sticks to its roots of explosive action and intense gunfights with anything from robot dogs to laser shooting tanks coming at the player.
Set in an alternative timeline where the Nazis won WW2 and are now dominating the world, the game’s protagonist, B.J Blazcowicz, is the only thing that can stop the Nazi war machine, even if it means going to the moon to kill a few of them.
Released in 2014 for the PS3, the game’s graphics were exceptional for its time and hold up even today. The attention to detail during the cutscenes and the world around you set this shooter apart from most of its contemporaries.
The attraction for most players was the variety of loud and bizarre weapons, but by the end, people kept coming back for the branching narrative and the well fleshed-out characters.
5) Hotline Miami
Don’t be fooled by the top-down view and the retro graphics. Hotline Miami is one of the most violent games ever released. Most gamers don’t realize that this PS3 game was released at a time when being politically correct and sanitized, no-frills art was the ‘IN’ thing.
Representing humans as animals of different types, the game managed to step around certain touchy aspects. This allowed it to justify the mass murders players committed with club music booming in the background. The game made one think on their feet, adopt a shoot first and ask questions later.
It almost felt like a drug-induced state where violence is your preferred state, and the end of it made players realize the horrible crimes they committed.
Nearly every good game ends with imparting deep emotion, generally positive. The end of Hotline Miami left gamers shocked at their actions, with the only relief that none of their crimes were real. This feeling, however dark, is a work of art and shouldn’t be attempted again.
Disclaimer: This article reflects the opinions of the writer.
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Srijan Sen